“Well, I suspect the timing in this case was dictated by the Israeli election. It’s very popular in Israel to kill lots of Palestinians in Gaza. And Hamas is seen as a monster, and so a war against Hamas… it wins votes.”

­Charles W. (“Chas”) Freeman, Jr. (born 1943) is an American diplomat, politician and writer. His major political career began as the principal American interpreter for President Richard Nixon’s first visit to China in 1972. From 1989 to 1992 Freeman served as the US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, where he dealt with issues related to the Persian Gulf War. Then Freeman was appointed Assistant Secretary of Defense, International Security Affairs (1993-94). Later he became the president of the Middle East Council and other institutions. In February 2009, a leaked media report indicated Freeman might soon chair the National Intelligence Council in the Obama administration. This triggered a wave of criticism from prominent pro-Israel figures, and after several weeks, Freeman withdrew his name from consideration.

Was Israel’s Pillar of Cloud self defense, or state terrorism? What is the Israeli lobby in the US, and what does the Arab lobby have to counter it with? To get some answers, RT sat down with former US Assistant Secretary of Defense Chas Freeman.

On November 14, Ahmed Jabari, Hamas’ military leader in Gaza Strip, was killed in an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) airstrike. It signaled the beginning of the IDF’s Operation Pillar of Cloud, which Tel Aviv said was aimed at halting indiscriminate rocket fire into Israeli territory from the strip.